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To Worm or Not to Worm

Presented by Lyn Dunsmuir

Copyright 2005-2006 Linda Dunsmuir

• Worms are an unpleasantness that adult birds can pick up just by eating grass in the yard. Birds that have too many tapeworms in their gut will eat less, lay less and begin to look miserable.

• I feel sure everyone here has wondered and possibly worried about worming their flocks. I have read may different opinions on the subject.

• Chemical worming, natural methods.

• There are many different products available to worm poultry for a wide range of worms.

• Garlic, D.E., to name just a few, offer a more natural way to continually worm.

•A Microscope with 4X, 10X & 40X power with a built in light

•Blank Slides

•Cover slips- small, very thin cover glasses fit on a slide, temporarily flattening the liquid specimen

•Rubber gloves

•Something to collect specimen in

•Floatation Solution

•Stick to stir specimen

•Paper and pen

•ID pictures

YOU WILL NEED

Recipe For Float SolutionFrom Fias Co Farm/Molly Bunton

• Put some Epson Salt in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Fill about 2/3 full with water.

• Shake the jar well & keep adding more Epson Salts over a 24 hour period. Shake well each time you add the salt.

• You will have a permanent layer of Epson Salt in the bottom of the jar. No more Epson Salt will dissolve in the water. You now have a saturated floatation solution. Pour off the solution into another jar leaving behind the non-dissolved Epson Salt grains.

• The water/Epsom salt solution will be heavier than regular water and the worm eggs will float to the surface of the solution.

Recipe For Float Solutionby Gail Damerow

•Combine 2¼ cups of sugar with 1½ cups of tap water in small saucepan

•Stirring, heat the mixture until it turns clear

•Pour solution into a clean labeled jar

•Keep refrigerated until needed

Getting Started•Collect the freshest and most intact sample as possible.

•Place the fecal matter in a container (can be as simple as a paper cup).

•Add float solution and stir vigorously until all fecal matter is broken up and suspended in liquid.

•Add more float solution until the container is almost spilling over the top.

•Place a cover slip on top of the fluid and leave for approx. 10-15 mins.

•After the time lapse, carefully pick up the cover slip and place it moisture side down on a slide so it can be examined.

•Be careful not to cause too many air bubbles as this can be very misleading to an untrained eye.

Use of the Microscope

•Place slide under the microscope.

•Make sure light intensity is turned down & settings is on 4X.

•The view will be inverted so to move the viewed area upwards move the slide down.

•To view the left side of the slide move the slide to the right.

•Move the slide slowly from side to side until you have viewed the entire slide.

•To examine something more closely, position the object in the center and increase magnification to 10X, then onto 40X.

•The higher the magnification the harder it is to control the object being viewed. This will take some practice.

Now the fun part•First you need to have your pictures of parasites handy & your pen & paper.

•Worm eggs are all produced by worms of the same size and, apart from minor variations, are all essentially expected to be the same size in a single sample.

•If you see a characteristic structure which is repeated but with considerable size variation, you are likely looking at an artifact or an air bubble.

•If you are not seeing anything then change your settings. You might be missing fragile specimens by using too much light. Try focusing up and down in the same spot.

•Some parasites will suspend high in the fluid space right up against the cover slip while others float in the middle and some will sink right down against the glass slide.

•Start looking for worm eggs. You aren't actually going to see worms, just worm eggs. Every time you see a worm egg, make

a mark on your paper.

•The eggs are small, so take your time and keep looking. You will see all sorts of stuff on the slide (it is fascinating), but eventually you will probably see a worm egg; and from then on, you will know what you are looking for. You may see lots of stuff that looks like worms, but remember that chickens/guineas eat lots of varied bugs, plants and weed seeds. The cells of these can sometimes look long and wormlike. You are looking for oval shaped eggs. Check your photos. If you locate what you think is a worm egg, you can switch your microscope to 40X power to get a really good look. (When using 40X power the lens gets so close to the slide that you can accidentally break the slide with the lens, so do this slowly.)

•As you move your slide around, you will see what looks like lots of worms. Observe carefully. These could be air bubbles. You will be able to tell these as they will be perfectly round and have very dark edges and clearish and/or bright centers. Once you realize what they look like, you won't mistake the bubbles and eggs.

•When you are done, count the total marks you've made. This will be the total number of eggs you saw.

•According to Gail Damerow, finding a few parasite eggs is normal and no cause for alarm. A count of more than 500 eggs per gram of feces is considered a moderate infestation, which translates into about 1000 eggs per ½ inch blob of droppings. A count of more than 1000 eggs per ½ inch blob means prompt treatment is necessary.

CECAL COCCIDIUM Of Chickens

2 Species Of COCCIDIA Of Turkeys

COCCIDIA OF PHEASANTS

COCCIDIUM Of PIDEONS

ASCARID Of Chickens & Rarely Of Turkeys & Guinea Fowl

CECAL Worm Of Chickens, Turkeys & Guinea Fowl

Crop Capillarid Of Chickens, Turkeys Grouse, Quail & Pheasants

Capillarid Worm Of Small Intestine Of Chickens, Turkeys & Pheasants

Gapeworm Of Chickens, Turkeys & Guinea Fowl

Globular Stomach Worm Of Chickens, Pigeons & Quail

Spiral Stomach Worm Of Chickens, Turkeys & Guinea Fowl

• So when should we worm?

• Fecal floats can be a big part of our health regimen and cut down on the need for unnecessary chemicals and undue stress to our birds.

• Once you have figured out what parasite(s) are present, do your research into the various wormers /coccidiostats, etc, and find which one(s) are most effective in treating the specific parasites you’ve found in your birds. 

WORMERS

•Piperazine: approved for large roundworms

•Levamisole: effective against roundworms

•Ivermectin: effective against a wide variety of internal and external parasites excluding flukes & tapeworm

•Meldane: Food additive for large quantities effective against roundworms, capillary and cecal worms

BOOK REFERENCES

The Chicken Health Handbook by Gail Damerow

Veterinary Clinical Parasitology by Margaret Sloss & Russell Kemp (5th edition)

Living with Chickens by Jay Rossier

Under the Microscope by Dr Danny Brown

INTERNET LINKS

http://www.saanendoah.com/fecals.html

http://www.microscope-microscope.org/applications/animals/fecal_analysis.htm

http://www.terragethen.com/coccidia.html

http://www.fiascofarm.com/goats/fecals.htm

http://www.msstate.edu/dept/poultry/disparas.htm#asc

http://www.janssenpharmaceutica.be/jah/pages/portraits/p_poultry0.htm#

• All information in this presentation has been taken from the WWW and several books. I am enclosing the references in a handout attached to this.

• In closing, I want you to note that I am not a veterinarian or doctor and the information in this presentation is not intended to replace professional veterinary and/or medical advice. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat any health problems or illnesses without consulting your vet and/or doctor. I present the information and products in this presentation without guarantees, and I disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this information and/or products.